Construction members such as studs and trusses are becoming increasingly expensive and generally require heavy, solid lumber, such as in a common "two-by-four" or "two-by-six." As the construction members become larger, the costs escalate greatly. Moreover, wood is in relatively short supply and it would be desirable to use less wood or substitutes for wood in a given construction member. It also would be desirable to provide larger construction members at costs relatively comparable to those for smaller members. It further would be desirable to provide construction members which can be made easily into different lengths and widths, which are light in weight, which are straight, and which allow for easy passage of wiring, plumbing, and insulation. These advantages and others described below are provided by the present invention.
Studs or trusses having an upper and lower chord interconnected by a web and/or a connector plate are known; see, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,298,151 and 3,849,963. However, neither of these patents disclose a construction member having upper and lower chords rigidly joined by a plate (hereafter termed a spacer lock plate), a portion of which runs across the entire width of the chords in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the chords. This perpendicular portion of the plate substantially increases the strength and rigidity of the construction member. In addition, the spacer lock plate of the present invention can be easily inserted and rigidly fastened during manufacture of the construction member. Other advantages are described in the detailed description below.